Motion-picture photography



-April 15 1924. 1,490,302

(I C. J. WILSON MOTION PICTURE PHOTOGRAPH Filed Jan. 10. 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet I INVENTOR.

ATTORNY'EY April 15 1924.

C. J. WILSON MOTION PICTURE PHOTOGRAPHY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 10., 1921.

INVENTOR. a/l/oJ 51" A TTORNEY Patented Apr. 15, 1924.

; UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES J. wrnsom or rasannna,

CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO WONDER-GRAB PRO- DUCTION CORI PORATION, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF CALI- FO'RNIA.

Morrow-morons PHOTOGRAPHY.

Application filed January 10, 1821. Serial No. 436,090.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES J. Wilson, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pasadena, in the county of Les Angeles and State of California, have inwented certain new and useful Improvements in Motion-Picture Photography, of which the following is a specification.

An object of the invention, in general, is to produce weird effects in a realistic manner.

More specifically, an object is to combine upon asingle film the image; of an actor in one environment with images of objects in a different environment as represented by cartoons, photographs, paintings or other artificial productions or as represented by natural scenes.

Another object is to tures having certain c-aracteristics which could not be reduced byany other method. Another olzject is to-provide a method whereby a drawing, the artist making the drawing and an actor or actors may be combined'upon a. photographic film, so'as to give the effect of an actor appearing in a. scene as said scene is being drawn byanother actor, the artist.

Other objects and advantages will appear hereinafter.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention: s

'Fi re 1 is a plan view of an apparatus with which the new method can be effected, 5 the View being diagrammatic and the black stage ,and picture support being shown in section.

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional elevation of the black stage;

Figure 3 is an enlarged tion of the black board.

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the picture support showing thereon a drawing being'delineated by the artist, who is also depicted. Figure 5 is a front elevation of the black stage showing actors in position'in the stage carrying out their act.

Figure 6 is an enlarged view of a fragment of thephotographic film bearing the images of the actors'in the stage. of the drawing on the black board and of the artist as they are registered on the film.

Figure 7 is an elevation of properties employed in the black stage,

40 sectional elevaroduce motion pic-.

Figure 8 is a diagrammatic plan view of a different form of apparatus than that shown in Figure 1. i

It is to be understood that the apparatus dlsclosed in Figure 1 of the drawings is merely suggestive of a type of apparatus that may be employed for carrying out this new method, it being undeistood that any other suitable apparatus of different construction and arrangement of the different elements ma be employed within thespirit and scope o the invention. In Figure 1 of the drawings, of lenses 1, 2 arranged at an angle with re spect to one another so that light rays' projected through them, respectively, impinge there are shown a. plurality simultaneously upon a film strip 3 which may be moved in the usual or any preferred manner for producing motion pictures. It is not necessary to illustrate and describe the film operating mechanism nism is well known in this art. In aline- 7a since such m-echament with the lens 1 is a black stage 4,

which is substantially non-actinic so that no portion of it will make a photographic impression upon the film 3 when the film is exposed to light rays passing through the lenses 1, 2. The black stage is open in front and is provided with a floor 5, side walls 6, a rear wall 7, a ceiling 8 and a front wall 9 closing'the front of the upper portion-of the stage. \Vithin the upper p01 tion of the stage hidden from View from the front thereof by the wall 9 are suitable lamps 10 for illuminating the actor or actors who are to appear in the stage.

he provided with any suitable stage properties and such properties 'will preferably The stage may be non-actinic and, therefore, black. As illustrative of properties that may be employed in producing a picture by this method, I have shown in Figure 7 a platform 11 mounted on suitable sup ports 12 so as to raise the platform-above "the stage floor.

In alinement with the lens 2 in Figure 1 there is provided a support 13 on which a drawing, cartoon, painting, photograph or other miniature may be placed for photographing or, if desired, a suitable black ground may be provided on the support 13 to enable the drawing to be made thereon with chalk or crayon. Thesurface of the su port 13 is thus suscept'ble of receiving a rawn or painted sketch and said surface and the background 7 'for the actor correspend in actinic value. The support 13 is preferably provided with a hood 14 at its upper edge projecting in front of the support, and beneath or within said hood there are provided suitable lamps 15 for illuminating the drawing, picture or photograph on'the support so that it may be photographed. It is to be understood that the ighting of the actors in the stage and the lighting of the drawing or other miniature on the support 13 may be achieved by other means than those disclosed. For example,

the lighting may be effected by projecting 5 light from a position outside of the stage into the stage and projecting light from a suitable source positioned in lfro'nt of the sup ort 13. Such light sources must, necessari be outside of the field of view of the lenses 1, 2. a

With the apparatus above described, the new method of making mot-ion pictures is as follows: Assume, for example, that one of the actors is the artist indicated at 16 in Figure 4, that the artist as represented in said figure is producing a drawing on the support 13, and that he has already drawn a tree 17 and a brick wall 18; and assume further that the story to be portrayed includes among other features the appearance of a girl and a dog in the picture that is bein sketched by the artist. The girl indicated at is and dog indicated at 20 will be placed pon one end of the platform 11 previously placed within the stage upon the supports 12, so that the actors will be elerated above he stage floor 5. Having predetermined a plane on the drawing that will co-incide with the plane of the platform 11, when the stage and the drawing are viewed through the camera lenses 1, 2, the artist will sketch in a bridge 23 so as to make it appear in the picture taken by the camera as though the girl and dog are actually traversing the bridge. As soon as the artist has connected the bridge with the stream bank 24, the girl and dog proceed along the platform 11 within the stage 4. is to be understood that they latform 11 its supports 12 are made blhck so that they completely blend with the black interioror the stage. As the artist works on his sketch, draws in the bridge, and the girl and dog proceed across the platform, the

photo ra her ocrates the film 3 III a man-.

nor well understood in the motion picture t, thus obtaining on the film a series of p sures showing the image of the artist i the sketch, the images of the 3 walki? on he brid that r e frame s owing die girl and dog a in Figure 5 is repjust deprovided as described hereinbefore.

trate the principle upon which the invention operates.

In place of a sketch being produced on the support 13 by an artist, a finished drawing, painting, hotograph or other miniature may be p aced on the support 13 and the actors in the stage photographed into the scene thus re resented.

- It is undeist that the method may also be employed by substituting a ieal scene for the sketch, photograph or other miniature mounted on the support 13. To make this clear, the apparatus may be constructed as shown in Figure 8 of the drawings where the same lenses 1, 2, film 3 and black stage 4 are Alongside of the black stage 4 there is provided a second stage 25 and any desired stage properties may be utilized in this stage so that the images of said properties will appear on the film in combination with the images of i the actors occupying the black stage. The set-up of the scene on the stage 25 may represent an interior or an exterior. If it is to be an interior scene, chairs and a suitable table or other real furniture may be arranged and a scenic background 26 prepared to represent the wall or walls of the apartment. One of the advantages, in separating the actors from the scene in which they are to appear in the completed picture, will be clear when itis considered that certain cffccts can be produced in this manner that could not otherwise be produced, or at least would be very difiicult of production. An example, for instance, would be the appearance of a dancer within a bonfire. The dancer would occupy the black stage and the bonfire would occupy the scenic stage. Many other extraordinary and weird effects can be produced in like manner, the pictures as subsequently projected upon the exhibiting screen being realistic in the highest degree, and it being im ossible for the observer to distinguish anyt iing in the projected picture that indicates in the least as to how the realistic results are Secured with the; camera.

It is to be understood that any stage properties employed within the stage 4 as well as said stage will be black so that such properties cannot be distinguished from the background of the stage. Thus neither the stage nor the properties can have any actinic value,

in consequence of which they will not legister on the film when it is exposed for securing the images of the actorswithin the stage. The actors within the stage 4, or at least i those portions of the actors which are to be photographically registered on. the film, are made light in color tone, by light colored garments or otherwise-,so that they contrast sharply with the black of th'e'stage and its properties.

In making the sketch, the artist will preferably employ white or blue white chalk or 130 strip of sensitize crayon. It is understood that, owing to the limitations set by pen drawings, the showing in Figures 4 and 6 of the drawings is the reverse of what it is in reality, since the lines represented as being black are in the practice of this method substantially white and the ground tone though represented by the natural white of the paper is black in practice.

I claim:

1. The method of making motion pictures, which consists in ro'ecting upon a single strip of sensitize film through different lenses the image of an actor constructing a miniature against a black background and the image 0 a second actor positioned in a black stage, the image of the second actor appearing within the image of the miniature upon the film.

2. The method of making motion pictures, which consists in Lprojecting upona single film through different lenses the image of a miniature against a black background and the image of an actor positioned ma black stage, the image of the actor appearing within the image of the miniature upon the film.

3. he method of making motion pictures, which consists in projecting through one lens upon a frame of sensitized film the image of a surface susceptible of receiving a drawn or painted sketch together with the lmage of an artist while sketching on said surface, and projecting through a second lens upon said frame the image of an actor, there being a background for the actor corresponding in actinic value with the surface upon which the sketch is beingfmade, and the sketch contrasting in actinic value with said surface and background.

4. The method of making motion pictures, which consists in projecting through one lens upon a frame of sensitized film the image of a surface having a sketch thereon, and projecting through a second lens upon said frame the image of an actor, there being a background for the actor, the background and the surface uponwhich the sketch is made corresponding in actinic value, and the vsketch contrasting in act-inic value with said surface and background. H

Signed at Los Angeles, California, this 28th day of December, 1920.

CHARLES J. \VILSON.

Witnesses:

GEORGE H. I'IIIES, L. BELLE WEAVER. 

